


How Far A Star Falls

by devilmaytwerk



Series: Legend Of Korra [1]
Category: AtLA - Fandom, Avatar - Fandom, Legend of Korra, LoK
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-07-22
Updated: 2013-07-22
Packaged: 2017-12-21 00:34:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,362
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/893724
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/devilmaytwerk/pseuds/devilmaytwerk
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Korra's finally come back from her trip to the water tribes when she finds an old enemy losing grip with reality. With Tahno struggling to come to terms with his loss, and Korra more determined than ever to use her Avatar abilities for good, she's taken Tahno on as a pet project. </p><p>The challenge? To have him ready for the probending season by spring. </p><p>With training Tahno comes a busy schedule that threatens to tear a rift in Mako and Korra's relationship. With everything on the line, will Korra be able to find the balance?</p>
            </blockquote>





	How Far A Star Falls

The days leading up to Korra’s return to Republic City had been... unplaceable. For starters, there was the groggy, lethargic feeling that seemed to seep through Korra all the way to her marrow, and made her sluggish and tired on an almost consistent basis. Secondly, there were her parents, who had gushed over Korra’s achievements and had reprimanded her over her recklessness. They had praised her for her bravery and wagged fingers at her lack of strategy. But most of all, they were glad she’d dropped by, and they’d stayed up late drinking tea and snacking on small fish and pickled cabbage, with Korra fabricating only a small portion of the story where she sent Amon home crying, back to his mama.

Then there was Mako, who got along with her parents and made them confident in Korra’s taste in men, but also made them feel secure. As though their daughter were in good hands. And although she couldn’t agree with them more, she also felt a foreboding weight over the group’s journey back to Republic City. Back to duty, and busy schedules, and late nights training and early morning meditation. It made her think about what would become of the new Avatar crew once they touched down to their old lives. Things weren’t the same now, and with sentiments of love exchanged between Mako and Korra, it gave her an even more terrified outlook on going back.

The journey back had been fairly unphenomenal. The crew traveled back to Republic City with Tenzin and his air bisen, with Korra on the ground trailing behind on Naga. Air travel to Republic City was faster, and it was very out of character for Korra to isolate herself. She’d been the topic of discussion amongst the group as they went back, but ever since Korra had regained her powers, she hadn’t been the same. Isolation seemed to be Korra’s resort for everything, and if anything small even threatened to disturb her demeanor, she went to her room and stayed in the dark. Perhaps it was the shock of the battle; the one that had threatened to destroy Republic City, and the Avatar. Or perhaps it was being at home. Whatever it was, Bolin, Asami, and Mako had all noticed the dark cloud that hung above Korra’s head.

Touching down in Republic City was refreshing for the the bending brothers and Asami, for everywhere they looked they saw scaffolding to repair the buildings the equalists had destroyed, and a brighter sense of community amongst the workers and the market people. Though the sight caused Asami to cringe back, as though salt had been poured into an open wound, she knew how hopeful the city had been in the terrifying wake of equalist attacks, and it helped with the grief she carried over losing her father. 

They’d all gone back to their respective homes, with the bending brothers still living above the training grounds and Asami in her large, empty home, and Korra -- back to Air Temple Island, where she neither trained nor slept for what felt like months. 

Nightmares had become normal for Korra, and though the threat of Amon was gone, Korra could not settle the twisting and churning in her stomach. Nor could she understand the lucid dreams of her falling from buildings and not having the power to stop her own death. And it was screaming in the middle of the night that made Ikki and Jinora move from their rooms and to hers, comforting Korra and eventually falling asleep beside her on the bed. 

The attention of the household had been on the newborn, Rohan, who’d been born inside a tornado of chaos and destruction, with Pema feeling very lucky to be alive and Tenzin grateful for every effort that had been taken to ensure his son’s safety. Little Rohan was getting larger by the day, outgrowing the clothes that Pema made for him on an almost weekly basis. He had the demeanor of a saint, and although patient with his siblings and his parents, Rohan was usually fussy whenever Korra approached. For whatever reason, Korra had come to believe that Rohan could sense the disturbance in Korra’s chi, and didn’t approve.

So she kept her distance.

With some convincing, Korra had been shoved out of the temple by Ikki and Jinora, with Meelo trailing behind, responsible for the three air acolytes on a day trip to the market in Republic City. Due to the lack of terrorists, business had been allowed to flourish, and the economy in Republic City now boomed with an emphasis on fine goods and exotic fruits as their most valuable exports. Fine silks from the air nation, exotic fruits from the fire nation, earth nation jade jewelry, and water tribe pattern work were all circulating the city as fashion took on a whole new look, combining elements of the four nations. Never before had the city been so busy, and there was visitors and settlers from every corner of the Earth looking for their place in Republic City. It made Korra content, but it also made for busier streets.

\- - -

“Can we please, Korra, please can we go --”

Meelo was not dropping this easily, and with the three air acolyte children sitting on the steps of a temple, ice cream in their hands, Korra was struggling to maintain a sense of authority over them. 

“We can go to Narook’s tonight,” she started, “but wouldn’t Pema -- I mean, your mother, be upset if you didn’t come home for dinner?”

“Momma never cooks anymore,” Ikki said with a pout, her legs kicking against the stone column she’d been posed on. “She’s too busy with Rohan.”

“He is a newborn, after all,” chimed in Jinora, who hadn’t looked up from her book in a while. “He needs constant attention. Remember when Meelo was like that?”

“Hey, shaddap,” Meelo cried, throwing his oldest sister a pout. “I was a good baby, I ‘member.”

“No you do not,” Jinora accused, finally placing the book down in her lap. “You can’t remember when you were a baby --”  
“Enough,” Korra said in a tone that made all the children freeze and throw glances her way. 

“No more arguing,” she said, her hand moving to squeeze the area between her eyes. “It’s giving me a headache. We’ll go to Narook’s, alright? And we’ll have dinner there.”

Ikki giggled, and began to clap her hands in excitement, while Jinora and Meelo were caught in a staring contest.

“Can we go off by ourselves, please please pleaaaase?” Ikki whined, throwing Korra her best set of puppy dog eyes. “Jinora’s old enough, and we’ll stay in this part of town, and we won’t cause any trouble, and and and --”

Korra only threw Jinora a glance, and she was standing, book closed and tucked into the back of her uniform, both of her hands outstretched, palm up, waiting her younger siblings compliance. “You can count on me,” Jinora said in finality, taking Meelo and Ikki roughly by their hands as she led them down a dirt road alongside numerous vendors.

“Be at Narooks in an hour and a half!” Korra called out, as the orange uniforms of her small companions vanished amongst the crowd.

Korra saw no reason to seek out her friends; she just wasn’t ready to do so. She would have to, eventually, with the training for the spring Probending tournaments coming up in a week or so. Until then, Korra would keep her distance. Distance sounded nice, especially now as Korra stood amongst a busy crowd. But with the sun starting to slide across the sky and into place for night, Korra found that Narook’s hadn’t become busy just yet, and she figured it was the only place she’d find peace. 

In an almost ironic way, she was glad she was wrong.

The minute she stepped through the landing and into Narook’s, she heard swearing. A constant babble of words that made Korra’s face heat up in embarrassment, her eyes quickly dodging to the source. Her eyes widened at the sight, her hands moving to her mouth as she let the surprise dominate for just a moment.

Seated just a few tables away was, what she had struggled to recognize, was her old competitor, Tahno. She had hardly recognized him given the scraggly clothes, the scruffy hair, and the tired purple-like bruises beneath his eyes from what Korra knew all too well was a lack of a good night’s sleep. She hadn’t heard much about where Tahno had been these days, but from what Bolin had told her, word on the street was that Tahno was a media sensation. He was followed around constantly by interviewers, photographers, and journalists all trying to get a taste of this fallen star, who’d been on top of the world as the reigning probending champion, and was now a drunkard who spent his earnings on alcohol and cheap thrills, gambled away most of his expensive items, wandered home in the dark shouting spirits knew what, and collapsing into a pile of his own... well, she wouldn’t say. From what she could see, Tahno had indeed come to be a person struggling with a wound that had never quite healed. The posse he once ran with had now disbanded at his drunken command, calling them names even the newspaper couldn’t print. He drank heavily, made enemies and fanned the fire of their hatred, disrespected anybody who told him he’d had enough, and had come to be just an ill tempered, rude young man. The people of Republic City had come to regard him as a joke; a kid who’d let the fame get to his head and hadn’t been able to come to terms with his downfall.

What hurt Korra most was that Tahno never gave them any alternative stories. He ignored their taunts and their teasing, and from what Korra could see, he had adopted a sadness that touched his face and made him appear older than he was. 

Moving from her spot by the door, Tahno caught notice of her and immediately straightened, with a small glass of rice wine in one hand and the bottle in the other.

“You,” he hissed, jabbing the bottle hand at her in an accusing manner. “What in the hell are you doing here?!”

Korra only inhaled, her hands clasped tightly at her sides. “It’s nice to see you too,” she whispered, her eyes never leaving his hateful gaze. 

“What,” he said, suddenly curious, “have you come to taunt me as well? The almighty Avatar’s come to see where Tahno’s been, hm?”

Korra’s stance suddenly changed, her weight centralizing between her legs and her hands balling to fists. “Excuse me?” She asked, suddenly aware of the anger that had begun to boil the blood beneath her skin.

He scoffed, placing the bottle onto the table, and sloppily knocking it over only a moment later. “You, get out of here,” he threatened, his speech slurring as he struggled to keep his head upright. “Or I’ll... I’ll...”

Korra’s anger flared beneath her cheeks, and the hands at her side became fists, her feet carrying her over in a march to his table. “Or you’ll what, Tahno? You’ll challenge me to a one-on-one and then cheat?”

The remark had caused the room to become silent, and Tahno stared up in disbelief, sputtering for words. “That’s right,” Korra said, slapping the cup from his hand, “you’ve got nothing to say to me, have you?”

What overtook Korra in that moment scared her.

Maybe it was a civil sense of duty, or perhaps it was a sense of charity that made Korra speak up in a way she hadn’t done so in weeks. 

Or maybe it was because Tahno’s smack talking ended here.

“You’ve got nothing,” Korra hissed through her teeth, fists slamming onto the table so hard it rattled between them. “You had everything, and when Amon took it away, you let it consume you. And here you are, pretty boy,” she spat, her voice dripping with sarcasm, “drinking your life away, for what?”

He stared on, hatefully, watching Korra’s unchanging expression.

“Answer me, pretty boy, what are you doing here, drinking all this for?!”

“I don’t know!” he hollered, finally moving to stand on his feet, only to slip back and fall from his chair, landing onto the cold floor in a pile of whimpers.

“I don’t...know anymore.”

Korra heard a commotion behind her and she turned to look over her shoulder, meeting a group of journalists at the door, pens ready in their fingers to write spirits knew what about Korra and the ex-probender’s interaction. 

“Get out!” Korra screamed, turning to face them and sending a swift and precise gust of wind, knocking the group back over the threshold of the restaurant.

Moving to squat beside Tahno, Korra took hold of his arm in her hands and attempted to lift him, only to be met with resistance. “Go away!” Tahno screamed, tears streaming down his flustered cheeks. He reeked of rice wine, and Korra had to hide her nose in her sleeve to breathe. “I was doing so great without you!”

“Yeah, I can tell,” Korra shot back.

Tahno only grimmaced, tugging his arm free of her grasp.

She took hold of him again, this time ignoring the stench of his drinking. Her face came close to his, her grip tightening on his arm.

“Here’s the deal,” Korra started, “I’ll make a bet, since I’ve heard you’re a gambling man now. I’ll wager that I can have you probending ready by the spring. I’ll train you, from scratch, as though you were relearning the game all over.”

He scoffed at her, hints of laughter sneaking in behind his look of disbelief.

“I don’t know if you got the memo, but I’m not a bender anymore, duhhhh.”

“That’s the fun part,” Korra said, suddenly serious. “If you win our bet, I’ll leave you alone. Hell, I’ll buy your alcohol for a year.”  
Tahno paused, eyes narrowing. “And if you win?”

She smiled, sweetly, in a way that confused Tahno.

“I’ll give you your bending back.”


End file.
